News, commentary, and insights on adventures, and adventurers, from around the globe.

Tuesday, October 03, 2017

Super-Sherpa Nabs Sixth 8000-Meter Summit of the Year with Autumn Climb of Nanga Parbat

Even though I already posted an update on the fall climbing season today, I thought this story was worth sharing on its own. It seems that Nepali mountain guide Mingma Gyalje Sherpa has had a year for the record books, as he has now recorded his sixth 8000-meter summit of the year after topping out on Nanga Parbat in Pakistan yesterday. This is his second summit of that mountain over the past few months, confirming a disputed summit from this past summer.

While the details of the latest expedition are still a bit cloudy, Mingma checked in from Pakistan earlier today confirming the summit and that all of the team were back down safely. He did tell adventure sports journalist Stefan Nestler that it was an 8 person squad that went to the top, having reached the summit yesterday.

Reportedly conditions were good and the view from the summit of Nagna Parbat was excellent, allowing the super-sherpa to confirm not only this successful climb of the 8126 meter (26,660 ft) peak, but also the one that he completed with a group of clients back in June as well. At the time, visibility was poor and it was difficult to tell if they had reached the true summit. It was enough for Mingma to even cast doubt on their success. But, with an unobstructed view this time out, he now has no doubts that they did indeed reach the top.

To recap Mingma's accomplishments for the year, he first summited Dhaulagiri and Makalu this past spring in Nepal. Then, in the summer he took a group of clients to Pakistan to pull of the triple header of Nanga Parbat, K2, and Broad Peak. Now, he has returned to that country to claim a second summit of Nanga Parbat as well. That's not a bad mountaineering career for most climbers, but that was what he accomplished in 2017 alone.

Of course, he doesn't have any plans to slow down anytime soon. Mingma is barely off the mountain in Pakistan and he has already announced an expedition to Kangchenjunga for 2018. Looks like he plans to nab all 14 8000-meter peaks before he is done, with only a few more to add to his resume.

Definitely an impressive performance from this amazing climber and guide. I'm looking forward to following more of his adventures in the future. Congrats to Mingma on an amazing year.